Energizing workers is a force multiplier. Using workers demeans them, and in a culture like China with too much criticism, it is a bad plan. Workers need to know how they are doing and they need to have a way to measure it. They need us leaders to recognize them for their real achievements. […]

First I want to say thank you for staying with this blog. I would lose steam if I was just writing to the wind. Happy Birthday China Business Leadership Blog! You are now 1 year old as of December 12. Do go look at the first entry back on 12 Dec 2010. So faith […]

Empowerment is not a new topic, but we leaders often do not apply it very well in businesses. I am a former Army officer, and there it was clear to me that I just had one gun and my men had forty. My primary job was to get everyone to be as good at their […]

Some time back, I was leading a private manufacturing company, and they let me go. The event brings out a principle that I want to emphasize today. I spent my days building the organization and making sure high quality product got out the door while we did this. I built a team that could work together. […]

Hire the right people, and then invest in them. Give them lots of feedback, both good and constructive. Think through what they can be, and list what they need to get there. Then make it happen. One of the main things people need to get there is experiences that stretch them. They need to be […]

For us leaders, mentoring people below us sounds fancy and attractive and it has some value, but I want to talk about coaching today. Perhaps my passion for coaching came from reading Customer Mania! by Blanchard. Great book and in it he points out how Yum! started to build success through being customer focused. Part […]

Leaders like to direct action. They seek leadership, and they like leading. I will not say that is wrong, but it often leads to telling subordinates how to do their job. Let me tell a true story with some facts changed as always to protect identity. I know a factory where a good leader, let’s […]

An Ownership Attitude is the next big step after character. First is getting people you trust on the team. That is the character portion. Next is empowering these people and checking and coaching. Any time you sense a good ownership attitude in the right people, talk about it. That is what you want, so talk […]

A comment on my previous post shows me a follow up is in order. The comment by Will asked how long it takes to get to a WANT kind of culture. This reminds me of one new department I started not so long ago. From day 1, I encouraged workers toward an open culture, and […]